Skip to main content

Communication and Outreach

Introduction

Trees in Cities Challenge
Communicating effectively within and outside the forest sector is essential to promote sustainable forest management. The Section produces press and news releases, hosts the Forest Information Billboard, shares presentations and reports and is present in forest-related events. Follow us on twitter, linkedin and youtube.
The UNECE/FAO Team of Specialists on Forest Communication - the Forest Communicators' Network - is the major platform for forest communication experts to exchange and find common strategies. Its sub-group on Forest Pedagogics is an European-wide forum.
Subscribe to our mailing list via [email protected].

Follow us: 

Instagram icon
LinkedIn icon

 

 

Twitter icon

 

 

In focus

Redesigning the future of fashion and packaging through forest-based materials is possible

Fashion and packaging have one thing in common: both rely heavily on plastics. Global plastic production doubled since 2000, to reach an astonishing 460 million metric tonnes – per year. The environmental costs are enormous: scientists have found microplastics in places few humans have visited, like the deep sea and the Arctic, in drinking water, and the placenta of pregnant women. According to a recent OECD report, packaging accounts for 40% of plastic waste, while 11% comes from clothing and textiles, and 12% from consumer goods. Only 9% of plastic waste is recycled; the rest either accumulates in landfills, uncontrolled dumpsites or incineration plants.

Withing this context, experts at the online event “Forests for sustainable lifestyles and a circular economy” organized by the Joint UNECE/FAO Forestry and Timber Section to celebrate the International Day of Forests 2022, provided evidence that things can be done differently:  Forests can offer solutions to reduce the fashion and packaging industries’ reliance on non-renewable materials. The journey to sustainability will rely on new technologies and the engagement to move from a linear, plastic-based economic model to a sustainable circular economy. Forests are therefore a key resource in the shift towards renewable and biodegradable solutions as wood can be used for diverse purposes, with lower environmental impacts than many alternative materials.

To mark the Day, UNECE also launched its first podcast in a new series focusing on forests’ contribution to the circular economy: “One World, Zero Waste? The circular economy explained”.

Highlights

The "Trees in Cities Challenge" is back! Read this press release to learn more about the initiative's new focus.
Short film: "Forests in a nutshell" was launched to celebrate the IDF 2021. Watch the video here. Read the press release here.
A virtual exhibition "Too precious to lose" was launched in November 2020. Visit the exhibition here. Read the press release here.
Watch "More heat with less wood" - the most successful video UNECE ever made!